Retainer latch for pistol holsters



May 8, 1951 RETAINER LATCH FOR PISTOL HOLSTERS Filed Nov.

INVENTOR. MAX E. TOBY A TTOR/VEY Patented May 8, 1951 UNITED STATES OFFlCE RETAINER LATCH FOR PISTOL HOLSTERS Max E. Toby, San Francisco, Calif, assignor to Keyston Brs., San Francisco, Calif., a corporation of California Claims.

This invention relates to retainer latch for pistol holsters and more particularly to such latches which are manually operable for release from the exterior of the holster and have a guide for leading a pistol trigger guard into engagement by the latch.

As is known, a pistol holster is of the nature of an elongated pocket open at its top so that a pistol may be readily inserted and withdrawn. It is, of course, highly desirable that the pistol shall not be permitted to inadvertently fall from the holster. Yet, it is also desirable that a pistol shall be readily removable iby substantially the same manual hand action as is employed in re moving the pistol from the holster. It is further to be observed that it is usual that a pistol trigger be provided with a guard encircling the free end of the trigger.

Among the objects of the invention are to provide a latch for pistol holsters, which will guide a trigger guard into locking relation with a latch.

A further object is to provide in a pistol holster a pivotally mounted latch for a trigger guard of a pistol, which is operable from the exterior of the holster to release the latch from engagement with the trigger guard.

Another object is to provide in pistol holsters a latch for engaging the trigger guard of a pistol therein, in which the latch is operable from the exterior of the holster by a lesser movement than the distance necessary to release the latch.

Yet a further object is to provide a pistol holster having a trigger guard latch, sturdy in construction, simple in operation, economical to manufacture, and eflicient in operation, and otherwise to improve upon latches for pistol holder devices.

With the foregoing and other objects in View, which will be apparent from or further explained in this specification, a preferred form of the invention is described herein and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, it being understood that variations of details may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention defined in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawing:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the latch of the invention mounted in a holster, the lattebeing fraginentarily illustrated.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the invention illustrated as mounted to a holster body, the latter being fragmentarily in section.

Fig. 3 is a reverse side view of Fig. 2. a

Fig. 4 is an enlarged perspective View of the apparatus of the invention.

Referring to the drawing in which like ref erence characters indicate corresponding parts of the several views, It indicates a holster of conventional shape, having a rear wall H and a front closure wall l2, the walls being overlying and bound at the peripheral edge portion thereof, as by sewing or lacing [3. The overlying walls are shaped and connected relatively at their edges so as to provide a pocket for the barrel, chamber and trigger of a pistol. The upper portion of the rearward wall I! is longer than the front wall and thereby has a free portion i l extending upward beyond the upper free edge of the front wall, and may, if desired, be provided with a flap (not shown) for holding downward over a pistol grip handle o butt and for suitable fastening by button on the outer face of the front wall, such flap not being shown since it is a well-known facility and would obscure portions of the drawing. The rear face of the rear wall may also be provided at its upper portion with loops or belt straps 15 which are also con ventional and well known.

Within the holster and mounted on the inner face of the rear wall H thereof, is the latch mechanism generally indicated it, broadly comprising a pair of parallelly overlying elongated plates I i and i8, preferably of sheet metal.

The plates l1 and [8 are pivotally connected at one end as at 28;, and are relatively slidable in overlying relation in substantially superficial planar contact. The plate ll may be termed the notch plate and the plate l8 may be termed the latch plate.

The notch plate ll has an integral base flange [9 overlying the plane of the inner face of the rear wall H of the holster and suitably secured thereto, as by swaged rivets 20. The notch plate is bent perpendicularly upstanding from one edge of the plane of the flange l9 and, therefore, is perpendicular to the rear holste wall ll. At the end portion of the notch plate opposite the pivoted end, and spaced from the flanged plate Hi, there is provided a recessed notch 2!, the opening 22 of which is spaced from the adjacent extreme end of the plate, the main wall portion of the notch plate forming one side edge of the notch, and an elongated finger 23 forming the opposite edge. The main wall of the finger 23 each has an inclined guide edge, indicated 24 and 25, which relatively converge toward the opening 22 of the notch in order to afford guiding edges toward the opening 22, the inclined edges being relatively inclined outwardly from the notch opening, so that when a pistol is inserted into the holster, the trigger guard will be guided into the recess of the notch, even though the pistol may be inserted into the holster instinctively and without premeditation as to its exact position in direct line relative to the notch and the latch apparatus.

Substantially midway of the length of the notch plate is an elongated opening 26 preferably having at least one arcuate edge 2'! radial to the previously mentioned pivot 28, the latter being closely adjacent to the uppe or free lon-' gitudinal edge of the end of the notch plate opposite the notch opening 22. An indenture or cut-out portion 29 is provided in the edge of the notch plate at said pivoted end; and at one edge of the indent 29 the wall of the notch plate is cut and upset from its normal plane to form an ofiset lug 30, the offset lug providing a space or socket for a coil spring 3| and also an overlying guiding guard for the spring, one end of the spring being mounted upon a pin 32 of the opposite edge wall of the indenture, and the nose of the wall of the notch plate being bent out of its normal plane in the zone of the pin as at 32c, and into the plane of the latch plate It so that the pin 32 is substantially co-planar with a corresponding pin on the latch plate It, as will be described.

The latch plate 53 likewise is an elongated plate pivotally mounted at one of its ends on the pivot 28, being cut away as at 33 at the area overlying the indenture 29 of the notch plate and having at an edge of the cut-away portion of a pin 34 to receive thereon and hold the opposite end of coil spring 3|.

At the opposite end the latch plate is provided with a latch tongue 35, the free end edge of which is inclined as at 36 at substantially the same angularity as the inclined edge 24 at the notch opening 22, of the notch plate, so that when the latched tongue is in latched or locking position, the incline of the edges 24 and 35 are substantially a continuous aligned guiding edge. As will be noted from the drawing, the latch tongue, when in looking position, overlaps and substantially closes the opening 22 of the notch and its cutback edge 31, cooperating with notch 2| provides an opening 38 for receiving a bar of trigger guard of a pistol as shown in Fig 1.

Centrally of the length of the body of the latch plate I8 is an orifice 39, from one edge of which the body metal of the plate is formed to an integral upset ear 4i] cfiset from and bent parallel to both plates H and IS, the offset being substantially the thickness of the plate material of the notch plate I! so that the ear may extend through the opening 26 of the notch plate and have its free end overlying in sliding substantial contact with the opposite face of the notch plate whereby the plates are held slidably and closely together centrally at said ear, and the end edges of the opening 26 limiting the pivotal movement of the latch and latch plate relative to the notch plate. And, since they are also held together at the pivotal connection 28, they are thus held together in face to face relation for relative sliding when moved on the pivot 28, the arcuate wall 27 of the elongated opening 25 of the notch plate cooperating with the arc of movement of the ear to prevent friction of the ear against the arcuate edge of the opening 26.

Means are provided for manual operation to release the latch from the exterior of the holster. Centrally of the length of the upper free edg O the latch plate there is a perpendicularly extended arm Al in a plane substantially parallel with said plates and of a length to extend through and beyond the opening 42 in the outer overlying wall [2 of the holster and this arm 4| terminates in a perpendicularly flanged-over finger-press member or button 43 preferably having a substantial plane area which overlies the outer face of the wall I2 of the holster and is substantially parallel thereto, the length of the arm ll being such that the finger-press member is spaced from the outer wall 12 of the holster substantially the distance that the ear 49 moves in the slot 26, which in turn is sufiicient to move the latch tongue 35 out of the opening 22 of the notch recess 38. This is a resilient tensioned movement since the latch plate moves against the compression of coil spring 3| and upon release of pressure on the finger-press member the spring 3| is operative to permit the latch tongue to assume its normal locking position at the open ing 22 of the notch recess. It will be observed that arm l! is positioned between the pivot 28 and the latch of the latch plate, and because of the greater radial distance of the latch tongue from the pivot its arcuate movement will be somewhat greater than the movement of the ear 40 in the slot opening 26, and, therefore, it is not necessary that the finger press button be depressed as great a distance as the distance of movement of the latch tongue.

In describing the operation of the device, it is to be observed that the pistol indicated 44 of any suitable type is provided with a trigger guard 45 in the nature of a loop bar member, the forward portion of the guard being adapted to enter into the notch 2i. Upon insertion of the pistol in the holster, the guard 45, if in direct line with the inclined edge 36 of the latch tongue, opens the latch against the compression of spring 3! and the guard thereupon drops into the recess of the notch, whereupon the tongue 35 of the latch locks rearwardly of the guard bar, responsive to the tension of spring 3! It is not necessary, however, that the guard shall be inserted in direct line with the inclined edge 36 of the latch, since if it is inadvertently out of said alignment, it will be guided to the inclined edge of the latch by the cooperating inclined edges 24 and 25 of the notch plate adjacent the notch opening 22. To remove the pistol from the holster it is only necessary to manually press the fingerpress member 63 as a natural almost involuntary movement of the forefinger or trigger finger in the act of gripping the butt 33 of the pistol with the second, third and fourth fingers, which normally hold the butt of a pistol, the pressure operating against the compression of spring 3! to move the latch tongue 35 from the opening 22 of the notch, and the spring tension returning the latch tongue and finger-press member to normal locking position when the pistol and its guard are withdrawn from the holster and pressure on the finger-press button member is released.

It will be observed that the connected end of the lug 3D is toward the notch 2i and also toward the open end of the holster, and that the free end of the lug extends over the adjacent end of the spring, so that when inserting a pistol in the holster the end of the pistol barrel will be guided past the spring 3|, and the pistol will at all times be maintained out of contact with the coil spring.

Having described the invention, what is claimed as patentable is:

1. A latch mechanism for mounting in pistol holsters, including a pair of elongated parallelly overlying plates pivotally connected at one end, one of said plates having at its opposite end a recessed notch and the other of said plates having at its opposite end a latch tongue movable selectively into and out of closing relation with the opening of the recessed notch upon pivotal relative movement of said plates, spring means connected between said plates for tensioning the pivotal movement thereof, means for limiting the relative pivotal movement of the plates, and finger press means extended from the latch plate in a plane substantially parallel with the plane of said plates and adapted for extending through a holster wall.,

2. A latch mechanism for mounting in pistol holsters, including a pair of elongated parallelly overlying plates comprising a notched plate and a latch plate, a pivotal connection between said plates at one end thereof, the notched plate having at the opposite end a recessed notch, and said latch plate having at its opposite end a latch tongue movable selectively into and out of closing relation with the opening of the recessed notch upon pivotal relative movement of said plates, spring means connected between said plates tensioning the pivotal movement thereof, means for limiting the relative movement of the plates, and finger press means extended from the latch plate in a plane substantially parallel with the plane of said plates and adapted for extending through a holster wall.

3. A latch mechanism of the character described having the elements of claim 2 and in Which the means for limiting the relative move- 6 ment of the plates comprises a slot intermediate the ends of one of the plates and a tongue in the other plate slidably engaged through the said slot.

4. A device of the character described having the elements of claim 2 and in which the open ing of the recessed notch has opposed edges relatively converging toward the notch opening, and the end of the latch tongue has an end edge inclined substantially in alignment with one 01 the converging end edges of the notch opening.

5. A latch mechanism of the character described having the elements of claim 2 and in which the opening of the recessed notch has opposed edges relatively converging toward the notch opening, and the end of the latch tongue has an end edge substantially in alignment with the incline of one of the converging end edges of the notch opening, and in which the means for limiting the relative movement of the plates comprises a slot intermediate the ends of one of the plates and a tongue on the other plate slidably engaged through the said slot.

MA-X E. TOBY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 920,478 Keating May 4, 1909 1,635,984 Corriston July 19, 1927 1,641,439 Jovino Sept. 6, 1927 1,703,556 Stewart Feb. 26, 1929 1,750,139 Swift Mar. 11, 1930 1,954,500 Sparks Apr. 10, 1934 

